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WEEKEND
EDITION
PAGE 10A
142nd YEAR, No. 198
PAGE 11A
FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015
ONE DOLLAR
Astoria balances sewer work, rate hikes
Sewer project extension could give ratepayers some relief
By DERRICK DePLEDGE
The Daily Astorian
MORE INSIDE
Astoria’s vow to minimize the
Àow of wastewater into the &olum-
bia River after heavy rains will take
six years longer to achieve, but water
ratepayers could get some relief from
a surcharge used to help ¿nance the
sewer project.
The state Department of Environ-
mental Quality has granted the city’s
request for an extension to 2028 to
complete the sewer improvements
necessary to meet the federal &lean
:ater Act. The city, which ¿rst com-
mitted to the work in 1993, had pre-
Turn to page 12A for a
graphic detailing data showing
how peak surcharge costs on
ratepayers may be reduced.
viously intended to ¿nish the project
by 2022.
Water ratepayers, who essentially
pay three times every time they turn
on a faucet or Àush a toilet ² a basic
charge, a consumption charge, and
a surcharge for the sewer project ²
may receive a break on the surcharge.
&ity ¿nancial analysts estimate
the surcharge rate, which is now
86 percent of the basic charge and
consumption charge, will climb to a
peak of 110 percent, instead of 151
percent. So while ratepayers will pay
the surcharge longer, the peak rate
should be lower.
“Our main goal with the time
extension is to reduce the peak cost
to ratepayers,´ &indy 0oore, a city
support engineer, said in an email.
“Additional time also gives us the
ability to gather more data to better
scope the projects, which could re-
duce the overall program cost.”
See SEWER, Page 12A
ALEX PAJUNAS — The Daily Astorian file
A dump truck, seen through a 24-inch-diameter pipe, waits in line
behind other trucks for a load of dirt excavated from the site of the
1.2-million gallon storage tank that is part of the Denver Street Com-
bined Sewer Overflow Project Phase 3 at Tapiola Park in 2010.
Practice makes safer
Assault at
gunpoint
injures 3
Suspects Àee
possible hostage
By KYLE SPURR
The Daily Astorian
Photos by JOSHUA BESSEX — The Daily Astorian
A MH60T Jayhawk and Coast Guard ship participate in training exercises on the Columbia River near the Astoria Bridge Wednesday.
U
.S. &oast *uard crews had training exercises Wednesday near the Astoria %ridge.
The &oast *uard’s 13th District is made up of Oregon, Washington, ,daho and 0ontana. 0ore than 3,000 ac-
tive duty and reserve members, &oast *uard Auxiliarists, and civilian employees are stationed in the 1orthwest.
Three people were injured in an
assault at gunpoint at an apartment
Friday morning in the 300 block of
Alameda Avenue in Astoria.
Astoria Police initially responded
at 8:25 a.m. to a report of someone
shot at the apartment. When of¿cers
arrived no one was shot, but two
men had been assaulted at gunpoint.
A third person suffered injuries from
a chemical spray that was discharged
in the house at the time of the as-
saults.
Astoria Police &hief %rad -ohn-
ston said the two assault victims had
relatively signi¿cant injuries to the
head and body. Police transported
the three victims to &olumbia 0e-
morial Hospital.
Of¿cers learned that at least two
suspects entered the house and as-
saulted the occupants at gunpoint.
They struck two victims with ¿re-
arms and batons causing signi¿cant
See ASSAULT, Page 8A
A better
boatyard
&ommittee holds
¿rst meeting to
look to the future
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
A bird flies by as a MH60T Jayhawk helicopter and Coast Guard ship prac-
tice on the Columbia River Wednesday.
A Coast Guard rescue swimmer is lowered from a MH60T Jayhawk into
the Columbia River during an exercise near the Astoria Bridge Wednesday.
information had been compromised
due to the weakness.
At a 0arch 1 Port of Astoria
&ommission meeting, Executive Di-
rector -im .night headed off a bar-
rage of public
comment on
the impending
closure of the
Pier 3 boat-
yard. He an-
nounced that
after a meeting
with the state,
the Port was
canceling the
closure.
Jim
The
Port
Knight
would create an
ad hoc committee to look at its oper-
ation and future, he said, and provide
a recommendation to the Port &om-
mission.
The boatyard committee, a col-
lection of boatyard users with .night
as a facilitator, convened for the ¿rst
time Wednesday. &ommittee mem-
bers included:
Ed *reen, a commercial ¿sher-
man.
See WEBSITES, Page 8A
See BOATYARD, Page 12A
State websites may not be secure
Out-of-date software
leaves web visitors
vulnerable to attack
By HILLARY BORRUD
Capital Bureau
SA/E0 ² Oregonians who
used state websites to pay child
support, file unemployment claims
and renew their vehicle registration
in recent months were vulnerable
to attackers who could intercept
Social Security numbers and other
sensitive information.
The state and private contrac-
tors left the door open to what is
known as a “man in the middle at-
tack” by using outdated encryption
protocols on some websites. ,n that
scenario, the attacker intercepts
data as it’s passed from the sender
Outdated encryption software on several websites operated by the state
of Oregon, including one used for making online child support payments,
have put user data at risk.
to the intended recipient.
A spokeswoman for the Employ-
ment Department said Thursday that,
to her knowledge, no one’s personal